Volunteers collect garbage in Ha Long Bay (Source: VNA)
They came from different backgrounds, including students, businesses, and officials working for non-governmental organisations and State agencies.
US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius also joined in the activity, the second version of its kind, which forms part of the activities of the Ha Long-Cat Ba Alliance funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
It aims to raise the public awareness on the need to improve the protection of the sea environment in Vietnam in general and in the Ha Long Bay World Heritage Site in particular. Its first version was held in June 2016.
US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius said one of the alliance’s efforts is to develop a management plan, with the involvement of individuals, units, enterprises and local authorities, non-governmental organisations in protecting the sea environment to avoid negative impacts on the world heritage sites.
The programme also targets to maintain the quality of tourist destinations, thus creating jobs, generating State revenue and promoting green practices among businesses. The results from the campaign will be posted on the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) website.
With USAID support, the Ha Long - Cat Ba Alliance, initiated in 2014, aims to build a partnership between government, business, and community leaders in jointly preserving and protecting Ha Long Bay and the Cat Ba Archipelago.
In 2015, the Alliance formed a Leadership Committee with participation of businesses and provided technical advice to UNESCO on the management of Ha Long Bay, and made proposal to include the Cat Ba Archipelago in the Ha Long Bay World Heritage Site.